Transcript of speech by u.s. ambass

[kurdeng at aps.nl]

From: tabe at newsdesk.aps.nl
Subject: Transcript of speech by u.s. ambassador to the EU
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Pres Review

        -- washington-stuart  eizenstat,  u.s. ambassador to  the
european union,  spoke  at  a  press conference  in   ankara   on
june  5. following   is  a  transcript  of  his  remarks.  he  is
introduced  by marc grossman, u.s. ambassador to turkey.
           .......
  today  i am completing a five day visit to your  beautiful  and
wonderful country. i can honestly say that it has been  extremely
interesting   and   enlightening,   both   professionally     and
personally.  in turkey, with the enormous effort  of   ambassador
grossman and his staff, i have met with a wide range  of   people
in   both  istanbul  and  ankara.  turkish   business    leaders,
representatives  of  wide range of human  rights   organizations,
foreign  minister  inonu  and  senior  members  of  the   foreign
minister's  representatives of the prime minister's  office   and
the  president's office, members of the grand national   assembly
(including senior members of the major governing and   opposition
parties--the dyp, chp, and anap), and the president of the  grand
national assembly, mr. cindoruk. i have focused on one   subject,
which is the theme of my visit here, that is the interest of  the
united  states,  the very strong interest,  in  encouraging   the
european union and turkey.
       i have greatly appreciated these discussions and learned a
great deal from them. and i have, in turn, tried  to  express  my
own thoughts on the  steps that  need  to  be   addressed,   both
here and in brussels, which can  help  ease turkey's  entry  this
fall into the customs union.
  i  would  like  to make several important  points:  first,  the
united  states  strongly  supports turkey's accession  into   the
customs union and we also support turkey's eventual accession  as
a full member of the eu. we see the customs union as a   historic
measure  to integrate turkey economically and  politically   with
europe  and the west in the post-cold war era, as turkey did   so
successfully  militarily  in nato throughout the  cold  war   era
and since.  second, we know that  if  the  customs  union  is  to
happen, it  will   occur   only  if  both  turkey  and   the   eu
recognize   the  importance  of  this  historic  opportunity  and
invest their efforts with  the  necessary  urgency  to  bring  it
about this year. both the  european  union  and  turkey  must  do
everything that is necessary to secure  passage  of  the  customs
union. it is  important  to  put partisanship  aside. this is  in
the highest security interest  of both europe and turkey and,  we
believe, the united states.
  i  came to turkey to convey a clear message that l have  gotten
in  a  series of extensive meeting with senior  members  of   the
european  union and a cross-section of members of  the   european
parliament,  which  must vote this fall on  the  turkey   customs
union.
    the european parliament understands  turkey's  increased geo-
political  importance,   knows   the   economic   advantages   to
european  businesses of the customs union, and  appreciates   the
very   special internal security threat which turkey faces   from
the pkk, which they -- as well as the united states --   consider
a murders terrorist organization bent on dismembering turkey,   a
turkey   whose   territorial  integrity  both  europe  and    the
united  states  strongly  support.   i   believe   the   european
parliament wants to  find  a way to approve  the  customs  union,
but  has  made  it  clear   that   it   will   do   so  only   if
turkey  both  makes   its  competition,   intellectual  property,
consumer and  other  economic laws compatible with those  of  the
eu  and  if  there  is   continued,  demonstrable   progress   in
deepening   the   democratic   process,  respect  for  individual
rights and individual expression and  the rule  of   law.  in  so
doing, they are not  singling  out   turkey,  since   all   trade
agreements  which  the  european  union    has  negotiated   with
every  country since 1992  has  express  human rights clauses.
    i go back to brussels after this five day visit cautiously to
brussels after this five day  visit  cautiously  optimistic,  but
with a recognition that there is much work that needs to be  done
in a short period of time. delay  only  helps  the  opponents  of
turkey's deeper integration with the west. my reasons  for  being
encouraged, but tempered with realism, are as follows :
         a) all the major political parties and leaders in turkey
support the customs union with the eu, recognize it  as  a  major
step in integrating turkey and europe, feel  that  it  will  help
turkey become more competitive, export  more  to  a  350  million
person market in europe,  and  become  an  even  more  attractive
place than it already is for job-creating foreign investment.
  b) i was struck by the cooperation of the governing parties and
the opposition motherland  party  in  passing  a  strong  set  of
constitutional amendments out of committee recently,  which  will
be ready next week  for  plenary  debate.  this  was  done  in  a
bipartisan way and, if approved by the full grand assembly,  will
greatly broaden  political  participation  and  democracy  in  an
already viable,  democratic  turkey.  this  broad-bade  political
cooperation and collaboration can serve  as  a  model  for  other
difficult legislation, such as changes in article 8 of  the  anti
terror law. there is a recognition in turkey, as i have seen,  of
the need to deal with article 8, and a knowledge of the  symbolic
importance attached to it throughout europe.
    c) moreover, there is a clear understanding of the steps that
need to be taken to pass all necessary  economic  legislation  to
meet  the  october  deadline  when  the  eu-turkish   association
council must decide if turkey is economically ready to enter  the
disciplines of the customs union.
   d) in addition, a broad array of public and private leaders in
turkey  recognize  that  strengthening  the  already  strong  and
sturdy roots of democracy, free expression and individual  rights
is not in any way incompatible with  fighting  terrorism  and  is
not something being imposed by europe or by the united states.
     rather, it is something which turks believe will improve the
quality of their  own  lives  and  their  country's.  after  all,
turkey  has  itself  agreed  to  international  norms   and   the
government proposed a "democracy" package in march.
        i cannot stress this enough! this is not something turkey
should do because of the united states or for the european  union
or for the european parliament. rather, as the  government's  own
admirable package underscores, it is  something  turkey  will  be
doing  for  itself  because  the  benefits   of   even   stronger
projection of individual rights will benefit all of the  citizens
of turkey.
         e) i was also given a message of realism -- hope, but no
guarantees. the issues are difficult and they are sensitive at  a
time of continued pkk terrorism. much  progress  is  being  made,
but much work remains, with little time to do it.
   we hope that this historic opportunity to integrate the future
of europe and turkey in  the  new  po  t-cold  war  era  will  be
grasp.ed both by the european union and by turkey.  in  the  end,
turkey must make the decisions based on its own needs and on  its
own vision for the future of the turkish republic and the  people
of turkey.

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 * Origin: APS Amsterdam (aps.nl), bbs +31-20-6842147 (16:31/2.0)